The Liar Game
by DementedAquarian
Summary: The main characters are Blaise Zabini, Theodore Nott, Daphne Greengrass, and Morag Macdougal. The first half of the story is a brief conversation between them about Harry Potter's fame. The second half is the same conversation with their real thoughts and


"The Liar Game"

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Harry Potter characters. They belong to J.K.R.

I borrowed the character descriptions from an essay on HP lexicon by Diana Summers entitled "Secrets of the Class list"

Note: Morag is having an affair with Harry. Blaise has an active interest in Morag. Both Theodore and Daphne are single.

After the rewind: Morag and Theo's thoughts will be put in to change what you thought of the original scene. Theo is in Italics, Morag is in bold italics, and her thoughts are all centered on her relationship with Harry.

Lyrics from Henry Rollins "Liar"

Everyone in some way looked up to the legendary Potter; some, necessarily, like Malfoy with spite. It didn't matter why or how: there were a thousand reasons it could have been. The point is that they did look up to the boy who lived to create discord. It was almost pitiable how Potter continued to look abashed and stammer every time someone looked his way, which was every five minutes. Some people would kill for that kind of recognition, but people like Potter attempted and failed to avoid it. To be fair the lad did tend to get negative attention; it was always shocking how the world would smile at him as their savior one moment and blame him the second things went to shit. Funny too.

"If I were Potter I'd probably have bipolar mood swings too." Morag commented to an inattentive Daphne who was busy polishing her nails.

"Thank Merlin your not. Pass me the swirling silver would you? Mines stopped swirling."

Morag opened her school bag and grabbed the requested nail polish as she continued "I mean honestly Daphne what would you do with that kind of attention?"

Daphne held out her hand "Pose."

Morag felt her lips twitch as she placed the small vial into Daphne's outstretched hand. "I don't doubt it."

"Why are you still so interested in Potter anyway?" Daphne added in a haughty voice toned down slightly for her friend, "I mean he was an interesting piece of news back in first year, but seriously Morag, he's stale now. Boy wonder no longer, except to backwater journalists who can't keep up with what the readers want."

"Hmm...Perhaps you're right. What do you think Blaise?"

Blaise was currently leaning back on his bed flipping through "She took my Broom Away: Naughty Witches 5." He glanced up and rolled his eyes. "I think Daphne's right. You concentrate on the boy wonder a bit more than is healthy. However it's always good to keep watch on major players in case something drastic is needed...like picking a side at the last moment and joining in the rewards." He looked back down and reentered 'study' mode.

Besides these three there was only one other occupant in the room, Theodore Nott. Theo didn't say anything at all, just sat back on his own bed mumbling spell checks in case Malfoy had left an enchanted recorder around "by accident" again.

Unable to stop herself Morag continued "It's not like I don't have a reason to be bringing him up, did you even read the Prophet this morning?" She got two yes's from the boys and a no from Daphne, who added, "The Prophet is utter trash, and everyone knows that. Rita Skeeter just sells herself to the highest bidder and then writes what they want. Sucks for Potter, but since it's not true who really cares?"

"You mean besides Potter and friends?" said Morag a bit peevishly.

"Well obviously...Unless Potters a closet masochist." Daphne giggled at the thought, Morag mock glared, Theo looked at Daphne in disgust and Blaise added helpfully "Bet Grangers got him in chains..."

Daphne added in mock sympathy "Poor Weasley not allowed to play."

Theo piped up "But his turn comes later, didn't you know?"

"We should send our discoveries to the prophet, bet they'd pay a few galleons for a story like that." said Daphne.

"Hmm... you get some parchment, I've got the quill ready, and my handwriting is best so I should write it." Blaise suggested thoughtfully.

He and Daphne were all for the plan while Theo didn't mind either way and Morag was all against it. As always the Slytherins out talked their Ravenclaw friend, and before long she was joining in on the letter to Rita Skeeter.

ppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppp

Dear Miss Skeeter,

I have recently come across some information that might be of interest to you. It's something I believe your readers deserve to know about Harry Potter. So many children look up to him and if their parents only knew the truth, Miss Skeeter they'd be devastated! I myself used to believe he was a good upstanding boy who respected his fellow man, but now he doesn't even respect his own body! I walked in on something I wouldn't have imagined in my wildest dreams. As a fellow Gryffindor fifth year we share the same closet, and I was only going for my cloak...When I opened the door...Oh I shudder to say it...Harry potter was hanging by his thumbs...feet barely on the ground...and beside him was his longtime lover and girlfriend of famous seeker Victor Krum, Hermione Granger, with a dangerous looking leather whip in her hands. I tried to rescue Harry, but can you believe it, he didn't want to be rescued! He was content to hang. It's hard to remain in the same dorm as such a troubled and haunted youth. I know his past was sad and that he was forced to live in a cupboard, but Miss Skeeter, there is a line. And that line has been crossed.

Sincerely yours, Neville Longbottom

ppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppp

Despite how well the four of them got on none of them felt they could trust each other. It wasn't anything personal, just one of those facts of life. Even as they bantered and let small smiles escape their mouths they were always aware of what they were saying, and every expression on the others faces. To an extent they were even fond of each other in a selfish lonely kind of way.

Rewind:

"If I were Potter I'd probably have bipolar mood swings too." _Unlike Daphne, Morag was not beautiful or even pretty, she had an eerie quality about her, not in the same way of Loony Lovegood, something was missing, her blue eyes seemed almost empty, but purposefully empty. He had never known anyone else who could lie with their eyes as well as she could. She was in a constant state of control and it was a bit scary coming from someone like her. The only look she ever aloud to cross her features was the occasional glimpse of murder in her eyes. She __practically screamed violence even though he had never seen her lose her mask. There was definitely something boiling under the surface and slowly crawling its way out of that girl and he just hoped whatever it was wasn't directed at him when it happened. _

_** You think youre going to live your life alone **_

"Thank Merlin you're not. Pass the swirling silver, mines stopped swirling." _Ah, Daphne the beauty of Slytherin house, up there with the Patil twins in looks and twice as wealthy. He couldn't understand what had pulled these two girls together. They were equal only in their ambition. Daphne would achieve hers through a well planned marriage, he shuddered to think how Morag would achieve hers. Sometimes he thought Morag should be the one in Slytherin in Daphne's stead. _

_** In darkness**_

Morag leaned over opened her school bag in one fluid cat-like movement and grabbed the requested nail polish as she continued "I mean honestly Daphne what would you do with that kind of attention?"

_** And seclusion**_

Daphne held out her hand "Pose." she said arrogantly. _Daphne had more hot air than an undergrad in a philosophy class. Sometimes she would take it to the point of absurdity, other times, like now she would give short monosyllabic answers because she didn't think the question was really worth her time. She did that allot with Morag, but no more than she did with any other female. It really was strange that the two got on at all. Perhaps they just didn't have anyone else._

_** Tried to mix with those animals**_

Morag's lips twitched as she placed the small vial into Daphne's outstretched hand. "I don't doubt it." Even the lip twitch was purposeful and unaccompanied by any glint of the eye. _He always watched Morag very carefully, always hoping for a hint, some sign that she was human and not some demonic beast __magicked__ inside a girl's body. He still had no luck in finding her though._

_** And it just left you full of humiliated confusion **_

"Why are you still so interested in Potter anyway?" Daphne added in a haughty voice toned down slightly for her friend, "I mean he was an interesting piece of news back in first year, but seriously Morag, he's stale now. Boy wonder no longer, except to backwater journalists who can't keep up with what the readers want." _There it was_, _Daphne's perpetual mocking of Morag. It was all very subtle really. The words were what she'd say to anyone, her eyes, however, held a steely glint, the words themselves made less pronounced so as not to appear as anything but a friend...On second thought Daphne was definitely more the Slytherin than Morag. _

_**The solitary refinement of your room spits you back out onto the street**_

"Hmm...Perhaps you're right. What do you think Blaise?" _He couldn't fathom why but Morag always __**had**__ to know what other people thought about every little thing. It was weird and rather selfish of her to constantly question everything everyone did. To be sure, all you had to do was give some reason and she'd stop pestering for answers. Truth was never what she was looking for, unless she found it in the lies. _

_** And now youre desperate **_

Blaise was currently leaning back on his bed flipping through "She took my Broom Away: Naughty Witches 5." He glanced up and rolled his eyes. "I think Daphne's right. You concentrate on the boy wonder a bit more than is healthy. However it's always good to keep watch on major players in case something drastic is needed...like picking a side at the last moment and joining in the rewards." He looked back down and reentered 'study' mode. _Self assured, straight forward. Blaise never minded when Morag asked pointless questions that nobody wanted to answer. In fact he was the only one who answered honestly. He was always honest though, it was his trademark, set him apart from the rest of the Slytherins. Perversely Blaise always wanted to be different than everyone around him, and to say the wrong things in the right way. He was every bit as calculating as Morag but had much pettier and egotistical reasons. He was the least torn person he had ever met. He was you saw and if you didn't like him you could fuck off or bear the consequences. He planned out his shallowness with more detail than any other Slytherin had planned out their inner labyrinths._

_** And in need of human contact **_

_ I was only other occupant of the room. I hadn't said anything yet, and honestly it wouldn't surprise me if they had forgotten I was there. This didn't bother me like one might expect, it was more or less freeing to be seen as below notice. I did my part, which was to put my paranoia to use by checking if Malfoy had left a magical voice recorder lying around again. I didn't think he would be stupid enough to try it again, but there was always the possibility that Malfoy thought he would be too stupid to check._

_** And then you meet me**_

Unable to stop herself Morag continued "It's not like I don't have a reason to be bringing him up, did you even read the Prophet this morning?" She got two yes's from the boys and a no from Daphne, who added, "The Prophet is utter trash, and everyone knows that. Rita Skeeter just sells herself to the highest bidder and then writes what they want. Sucks for Potter, but since it's not true who really cares?"

_** I make you feel so strong and so powerful inside **_

"You mean besides Potter and friends?" said Morag a bit peevishly. _Morag obviously didn't live in a world that remotely resembled sane. Theo couldn't tell whether or not she was defending Potter or just irritated with Daphne. He noticed that Blaise's head shot up at the words but quickly went back down. _

_**Your ego obscures reality **_

"Well obviously...Unless Potters a closet masochist." Daphne giggled at the thought, Morag mock glared, and Blaise added helpfully "Bet Grangers got him in chains..." _Theo let out a sigh of relief, the dissolution of their little band wouldn't be today. He was always caught up with the knowledge that it would happen. The air seemed to be getting tighter with every day. How long could they rein in and control the reality of how they felt? He wasn't sure but he didn't have much faith in their capabilities anymore._

_** And you never bother to wonder why things are going so well **_

Daphne added in mock sympathy "Poor Weasley not allowed to play."

_ Theo needed to remind them that he was there. There was only so much negligence one person could take. _ "But his turn comes later, didn't you know?"

"We should send our discoveries to the prophet, bet they'd pay a few galleons for a story like that." said Daphne. _Ignored. But at least his voice didn't crack._

"Hmm... you get some parchment, I've got the quill ready, and my handwriting is best so I should write it." Blaise suggested thoughtfully. _Theo ripped a piece of parchment from the scroll __lying on his desk and handed it to Blaise. He was glad that they had found something to bond over._

_** You want to know why? **_

He and Daphne were all for the plan while Theo didn't mind either way and Morag was all against it. As always the Slytherins out talked their Ravenclaw friend, and before long she was joining in on the letter to Rita Skeeter.

_** Cause I'm a liar.**_


End file.
